Apropos
of T.V. Rajeswar’s "Outrage at Bamiyan" (March 18),
destruction of Buddha statues is un-Islamic, uncivilised and barbaric.
Not long ago, Buddhism had flourished in Balakh, Transoxiana, Khursan,
Turkistan and Persia before the Muslims conquered these places. Taliban’s
destruction of the Buddha statues at Bamiyan is one of the most
depressing acts of vandalism of modern times. Enough has been written in
its condemnation. Someone has rightly described it as an affront to
civilisation.

The rosary is one of
the objects that the Muslims inherited from the Buddhists. The Sufi
doctrine of Fana is the Nirvana of the Buddhists. Abdul
Ala-al-Marri, the famous blind poet (A.D. 973-1058) was a Buddhist. In
A.D. 711 the first Muslim invader, Muhammad-bin-Qasim, said: "The
temples of Hindustan are like the churches of Christians, the synagogues
of Jews and the fire temples of Magians."

The monuments in
Afghanistan were of great historical value. They were a thousand years
or more old. Taliban say they have destroyed the statues in response to
the demolition of Babri Masjid. Sheer nonsense.

Where were the Taliban
for all the eight years since the so-called Masjid’s demolition in
1992? One must not forget that Babur was just an invader whose commander
Mir Baqi razed to the ground a temple and constructed a masjid to
celebrate Babur’s victory. But Buddha’s statues had come up as a
matter of faith.

Kaikaye of Ramayana and Gandhari of Mahabharata hailed
from Afghanistan. Whenever we talk of ‘human values’ we think of
Buddha, Nanak and Gandhi — in this order. The Frankenstein’s monster
called Taliban is the creation of the USA and Pakistan.

Syed Shahabuddin wrote
in a national daily: "The Taliban are not Muslims. They are simply
mad, bad and dangerous." Iran wanted to purchase the Buddha
statues. Why does global impotence abound in the face of Taliban
challenge then?

Where will all this
take us? How long will we be able to hold on to the opulent tombs and
temples of the pharaohs, Luxor and Abu Simbel? They stand in Islamic
Egypt which is enlightened today but who knows what kind of loonies will
run that country some 50 years down the road? How will we be able to
protect Hindu and Sikh shrines in Pakistan? Are the Taliban not giving
new teeth to the VHP and Bajrang Dal? Time for the Indian Muslims and
the UN to wake up.

S.S. JAIN
Chandigarh

II

Nobody should be unduly
surprised what the Taliban has done. This is perfectly in tune with the
teachings of Islam. In fact, the only lesson from the Bamiyan episode
for India is that we should pool our resources with those of the other
nations of the world which are also facing a threat from Islamic
terrorism. India, being on top of the hit list of Islamic terrorists,
should take the lead in this much-needed endeavour.

A.K. SHARMA
Chandigarh

Be the best editionof yourself

Apropos of I.M. Soni’s
write-up "Be the best edition of yourself" (March 18), the
goal of all human endeavour is happiness. Most people possess a
materialistic outlook and their happiness centres around wealth.
According to them, money is the panacea for all ills and the solution to
all their problems. This is a perverted philosophy.

Money is not the end
but only a means to achieve an end. It is not even the best means
because its possession does not guarantee happiness. True happiness does
not result from external circumstances, but comes only from within. A
contented mind is an essential condition for happiness and a wild
craving for wealth should always be subdued. Wealth is an essential need
for an individual and the life-blood of a nation. But one must not
become slave to it.

When the poet Cotton
wrote: "The happiness of human kind consists in the rectitude of
mind," he was laying stress on a profound truth. Unless one attains
peace of mind by acting in a virtuous way, one cannot dream of being
happy.

Another factor for
happy life is perhaps some kind of seclusion. The man who is busy
engaged in selfish affairs of the world cannot attain happiness of mind
and body. This philosophy does not appeal to all. However, one should
occasionally be free from the distractions of everyday life.

One should not live
only happily but also usefully, not as a snowy peak above the clouds and
storm, but as a fruitful river fertilising the land.

K.M. VASHISHT
Mansa

III

True, happiness is not
dependent upon money and material possessions. It is a state of the
mind. A beggar in torn clothes can be happy, while even a king might be
miserable. Money can never buy us the elusive feeling called happiness.

All people are not
equipped with sufficient mental strength to help them rise above
material needs. All people are not so spiritually elevated that the
material deficiencies might not be capable of causing the "absence
or draining away of happiness" for them.

Frequently, even the
simple and trivial dreams of some people cannot be translated into
reality just because of lack of money. They might be trivial and
insignificant for the rest of the world, but the fulfilment at these
dreams constitutes great happiness for the people concerned. Because of
the absence of material means, those dreams remain just that — mere
dreams.

Another time when the
absence or deficiency of money hits people’s happiness is when they
are faced with gross injustice, but can’t fight back because they don’t
have enough money to counter unjust forces. That is why, we can presume
that though happiness does not depend upon money, its deficiency
certainly possesses the power to steal lot of happiness from the people
in this materialistic and commercialised context of the modern world.